Ghosts
by Darci the Thespian
Summary: Years after Johanna and Anthony escape, and Sweeney Todd and them all die, a few children discover the old shop and meet the ghosts.
1. Haunted House

Mary was annoyed at her little brother, Roger. Mary and her best friend, Penelope, were spending the day together. Of course, Mary was forced to babysit Roger. Mary and Penelope were both 16. They grew up together and attended school together. Mary had black, curly hair that was cut very short. Her blue eyes were fierce and she was very stubborn. Penelope had beautiful long blonde hair and blue eyes also. Roger looked exactly like his older sister, Mary. He was 10, and didn't want a babysitter.

They were walking around the streets of London, while Roger complained.

"Why can't we do what I want to do? You're here to babysit me," he whined.

"Actually _you_ are here because I'm not allowed to leave you at home alone. Penny and I are just taking a walk, calm down." snapped back Mary.

Penelope didn't say anything as they turned onto a street. She glanced at the name, which was Fleet Street. She frowned, as that name sounded very familiar.

Mary stopped in front of a very old and creepy building. She tried to make out the lettering of the shop.

"What is this place?" she asked, curious.

Penelope had an uneasy feeling about this. "I don't know. I think this a haunted place. Remember how the boys were talking about it? We shouldn't go in there."

Mary frowned. "Yeah, I suppose so." The girls turned away, while Roger made a decision. He didn't want to be bored out of his mind for the rest of the day. He quickly sprinted towards the shop and went inside.

Mary and Penelope turned around and hurriedly followed Roger. When they entered the shop, they paused. It was a meat pie shop. It was old and dusty, and looked like it had once been a successful shop.

And a ghost was busy making some pies.


	2. Mrs Lovett

**A/N: There may be a little Sweeney Todd/Mrs. Lovett, but not a whole lot. There's also going to be some Lucy/Sweeney Todd later on.**

Mary found her voice first. "W-who are you?"

The ghost looked up. "Customers?" she asked.

The children shook their heads. The ghost floated towards them.

"I'm Mrs. Lovett, and this is Mrs. Lovett's meat pies. A very successful business." The ghost said.

Roger frowned. "Why are you here?"

"I'm making pies, of course!" Mrs. Lovett said, a little too enthusiastically.

Penelope sighed. "So your meat pies ran out of business, and you want to stay here forever?" Penelope was getting very creeped out. Something strange was going on around here.

"Well, no. I died, that's why they ran out of business." said Mrs. Lovett slowly.

"How did you die?" asked Mary. She was anxious to leave as soon as possible.

"Well, that's a very long story." Mrs. Lovett said curtly.

Roger crossed his arms. "We got time," he said.

Mrs. Lovett smiled. "You remind me of a little boy I once knew. Toby, his name was."

"What happened to Toby?" asked Mary.

"I don't rightly know." said Mrs. Lovett, "He avenged my death, and then I think he scattered and left England, or at least London."

"Oh," said Mary. She looked around. She was very curious to know more, but this ghost was very crazy and seemed unstable.

"Why don't you tell us about your business?" said Penelope, breaking the silence.

"Well, at first I had the worst pies in London. But then, I changed the main ingredient and people loved it." said Mrs. Lovett.

"And what was your main ingredient?" asked Mary, slowly.

Mrs. Lovett smiled, and in the glow, she looked malicious. "Human meat. . . Oh don't act like that! It was men in the first place and second of all I didn't even kill them."

"Who killed them?" asked Penelope in a very small voice.

Mrs. Lovett sighed. "Alright, I guess I do have to tell you the story. I don't mean to frighten you; this was years ago, but still." She cleared her throat and began.

Mrs. Lovett told us of a man called Sweeney Todd, and his wife, Lucy. They were married and had a beautiful daughter named Johanna. A jealous man, Judge Turpin, sent Todd away for no good reason and molested his wife. Lucy became crazy and Johanna grew up under the judge's watchful eye. Todd came back and discovered what had happened. Mrs. Lovett had told him that his wife died, to spare him the pain of having a crazy wife who doesn't remember anything from her past. Todd swore to get revenge on Judge Turpin. When the time came, a young sailor named Anthony accidently got in the way, and Judge Turpin left without getting killed. Todd swore revenge and started 'practicing' by killing men. To dispose of the bodies, Mrs. Lovett baked them into pies. Meanwhile Anthony fell in love with Johanna and planned her escape. Sweeney Todd accidently killed his wife, he actually killed Judge Turpin, he killed Mrs. Lovett from lying to him, and then Toby killed him to avenge Mrs. Lovett.

Mary raised her eyebrow at the story. She glanced at Penelope, who looked queasy.

"So, where are the other people? The ghosts." asked Roger.

"Floating around here somewhere," said Mrs. Lovett. "I mainly stay here. It's painful to see Sweeney. I mean, all I wanted was to—was to—" at that, she started crying.

Mary and Penelope glanced at each other. What were they supposed to do with a crying ghost?

Mrs. Lovett calmed down. "I had plans to marry him and live happily by the sea with Toby. I tried to protect him from the horrible truth. And he killed me!" She looked at the kids. "I mean, I still love him, but he's with Lucy now, and I am kept busy by the pies!" She turned back around and went back to make some pies. "I wonder why Toby never comes to visit me," she said sadly.

"How long has it been exactly?" asked Mary.

"About 16 years, I think," Mrs. Lovett paused. "Now, now, now, I'm very busy, why you should go down to the cellar and meet Judge Turpin and Beadle, his little slave. Oh, and Pirelli is lurking around somewhere, be mindful of him. He isn't exactly what you call 'sane,' but then again, who is?"

Mary, Penelope, and Roger nodded and went deeper into the house. Penelope turned to Mary. "This is dreadful, can't we leave?"

"I want to know the whole story," said Mary. "Like what happened to Anthony and Johanna and who the Beadle and Pirelli are."

"Okay," said Penelope, wistfully thinking of the rare, beautiful day they were leaving behind.


	3. Pirelli and Beadle

Mary grabbed Roger's arm. "A fine mess you got us into!" She whispered fiercely. "Why did you have to run in here?"

Penelope crossed her arms and glared at Roger. Roger stuck his chin up in the air. Before he had a chance to argue, the kids were assaulted by the smell.

"Ew, it smells like…" started Mary, holding her nose.

"…pee" finished Penelope. "Let's go back."

But Roger wanted to find out why it smelled like pee. He walked over and saw a ghost there, doing a weird experiment. "Um, what are you doing?"

"Making my miracle elixir…I have the two main ingredients…who are you?" The ghost looked up, confused.

"I'm Roger, and this is my sister Mary and her friend, Penelope." said Roger. "Who are you?"

"Signor Pirelli. I am a barber," Pirelli stood up a little straighter.

"Why does it smell like pee?" asked Mary.

"Ah, my secret recipe. Piss and ink. It works wonders," Signor Pirelli nodded. Mary raised her eyebrows. She noticed how he looked Italian, but didn't seem to have an accent.

"Are you really Italian?" Roger asked boldly. Pirelli smiled and shook his head.

"But why—" Penelope's question was cut off by a shout of "GET OUT!"

Pirelli sighed, "Ah, Beadle needs to stop going upstairs to spy."

Another ghost came into the room, Beadle apparently.

"Do we have guests?" he asked, grinning.

Pirelli started muttering something about shaving and cheating.

Beadle looked at Roger, Mary, and Penelope. For a split second, Mary thought she saw fear in Beadle's eyes when he looked at Penelope, but only for an instant.

"Come on down, why don't you meet the great Judge Turpin! The Judge would like to greet all of his guests." Beadle smiled, and gestured down into what looked like a cellar. Mary peeked in, and saw a furnace. Even though the fire was dead, the chills were back.

"Who were you spying on up there?" asked Mary.

"No one, no one," said the Beadle.

"Then who shouted?" asked Roger, defensively. He seemed to be the only one at ease.

"It was your imagination," said Beadle. "Now, I really must insist on going to talk to Judge Turpin."

Mary and Penelope glanced at each other and then headed into the cellar, Roger right behind them.


	4. Judge Turpin

Mary and Penelope tentatively made their way into the cellar. Roger looked around. It smelled nasty, a combination of a sewer and dead corpses. There were some nasty looking stains on the ground.

Judge Turpin turned and looked at the girls. There was something greedy in his eyes. Judge Turpin paused, and seemed to contemplate something. Then, he started walking towards Penelope.

"My, my, my, you are a very beautiful girl. Such lovely hair. I once knew a girl like you, but she didn't trust me and ran away with a sailor…" Penelope kept walking back, but eventually she stopped, with her back pressed against the wall. Judge Turpin kept walking closer, talking and talking about pretty ladies with long blonde hair.

Roger and Mary meanwhile were getting madder and madder. Mary opened her mouth to say something when Roger stepped forward. He swung his arm through Judge Turpin's head. It didn't do any damage, but the meaning was clear.

Judge Turpin swung around and glared at Roger. "Stupid, little children. They have no place in the world and should be dealt with severely."

Mary grabbed Penelope and shoved her away, "Run!" she said, and went to rescue her brother. Beadle stepped in front of her. Mary took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She ran straight through Beadle, and got Roger. Running through a ghost isn't a pleasant experience. "Come on, let's go!" She tugged Roger away and out of the cellar, where she slammed the door shut. She turned to face Penelope.

"Okay, let's leave." Mary said, catching her breath.

"Wait," said Penelope looking up at some stairs leading up above. A ghost was there, frowning. The ghost turned and entered the room. Penelope frowned and followed her as something nagged in the back of her mind.

Mary went with Penelope, rather reluctantly. Before they entered the room, she grabbed Penelope's arm.

"We need to get out of here," said Mary fiercely.

"No, I need to find out the whole story," said Penelope.

"Why?!" asked Mary, exasperated.

"Because…that girl they were talking about, Johanna, that's my mom." said Penelope.

Mary raised her eyebrow, "Johanna's a common name…"

"It fits together. My dad's name is Anthony. I'm 16. They fled 16 years ago. I moved around a lot when I was younger, before settling here. I don't know my Mum's parents. I heard my parents talking about places like Fleet Street, and people like Judge Turpin and Sweeney Todd." Penelope took a deep breath. "Do you think my grandparents are up there?"

Mary thought. It was starting to make sense, somewhat. She sighed. "I think there is a really good chance that they are. And you should go up there. And I'll be right next to you." Mary turned to Roger. "Mrs. Lovett seemed to like you, can you stay with her until we're back." Roger nodded and went back into the pie shop. Mary and Penelope looked at each other, and then entered the room.


	5. Lucy and Sweeney Todd

Penelope took a step forward, staring at the two ghosts in the room. It was a man and a woman, and they turned to look at the girls curiously.

"Hi, I'm Mary, and this is Penelope," Mary said, when no one spoke. "Who are you?"

The woman spoke first, "My name is Lucy, and this is my husband, Benjamin."

"I thought you were Todd," said Penelope curiously.

The man smiled. "I am known as Benjamin Barker or Sweeney Todd."

"Oh," said Penelope, at a loss for words.

Mary cleared her throat, "I believe that Penny is your granddaughter," she said. Sweeney Todd and Lucy looked her curiously and then at Penelope. Mary couldn't help but notice the similarities. Penelope shared her grandfather's jaw and her grandmother's beauty.

Penelope took a deep breath, "My mother was Johanna, and my father was Anthony."

The couple smiled. "You take after Johanna a lot," said Sweeney.

"Thanks," said Penelope nervously. "So, what really happened?" She asked.

Sweeney and Lucy exchanged glances. "Well…" started Sweeney, and he told the full story of what had happened years and years before.

After the story, there was a silence. Lucy turned to Penelope, "My dear, let us talk for a while. You may be too old, but I can still give you some advice."

Lucy and Penelope went off to talk, which left Mary and Sweeney.

"So." Mary said.

"So," said Sweeney.

"Why can't you ghosts get along? I understand Judge Turpin—" Mary said, and at that name, Sweeney flinched. Mary continued, "—did stuff that is unforgivable, but you shouldn't banish Mrs. Lovett. You two are happy up here, and she is slowly going insane."

Sweeney sighed. "Listen, she lied to me. I would have been better off if she just told me the truth."

"But her intentions were good, even though her actions were wrong!" said Mary. "Just invite her to talk with you and Lucy."

Sweeney shrugged and frowned, doubtful. "If Lucy agrees, I'll give it a try."

"Good," said Mary, and she smiled.

Lucy and Penelope eventually came back to join Sweeney and Mary.

"Will you come and visit?" asked Lucy.

Penelope nodded, "Of course." She looked at Mary and smiled, "we may even bring some guests."


	6. Closure

It took a couple of weeks for Penelope to get the nerve to tell her parents. When she did, Johanna and Anthony were shocked. And they were also very nervous. Finally, Johanna decided to meet them.

"Are you sure?" asked Anthony.

Johanna nodded. "Yeah. I'm sure." She turned to Mary and Penelope. "You two can babysit Roger, since you failed to do that the other day."

Mary and Penelope nodded.

As Johanna prepared for the meeting, Sweeney made a decision too.

"Should I talk to her?" He asked Lucy.

"I think you should. Just once. You don't want her to become like Pirelli." Lucy pointed out.

"True," said Sweeney. He sighed and straightened up. "Wish me luck," he joked, as he went downstairs for the first time in a while.

"Mrs. Lovett?" he called out, hesitantly.

Mrs. Lovett whipped around, and frowned. "Why are you here? I left you to your business."

"I know, and thank you," he tried to smile, but failed.

"Alright," said Mrs. Lovett. She paused, "how's Lucy?"

"Good."

"That's good."

"You don't have to be banished down here forever."

"Really?" She asked, hope in her voice.

Sweeney nodded. "It's about time I forgive you. Lucy and I are together now, and my anger at you has nearly vanished."

"Oh, okay," she said, smiling. "Thank you."

Outside, Johanna and Anthony stopped in front of the building. "I'm scared," said Johanna.

"It will be okay. I'll always be right next to you," said Anthony, holding her hand.

Johanna didn't say anything, but felt queasy as she stared at the building.

The couple walked into the building. Anthony cleared his throat as they watched a ghost make pies. The ghost looked up.

"Mrs. Lovett?" asked Anthony.

"Oh, Anthony, I remember you. I'm so happy that you and Johanna made it," Mrs. Lovett smiled.

Anthony nodded. "Yeah, we came to…well…for closure I guess."

Mrs. Lovett nodded, serious. "They're upstairs. Get there quickly."

Anthony and Johanna took her advice to heart. They nearly ran upstairs, and quickly got in the room.

"Mum? Dad?" asked Johanna, looking at the two ghosts that resembled her.

"Johanna!" cried out Lucy, going over to her daughter.

"Mum!" Johanna smiled. "I can't believe it's actually you!"

"Oh Johanna, I have missed you so much," said Lucy. Sweeney walked over to them.

"My girls," he said. He turned to Anthony. "Thank you. For taking care of Johanna."

Anthony nodded.

Soon, it was time for them to go. "Goodbye, dear," said Lucy fondly, looking at Johanna.

"Bye Mum, I'll come back soon," promised Johanna.

Sweeney chuckled, "Just once in a while. To see how Penelope's doing and what you guys are up to."

"Bye Dad. I love you guys." said Johanna, smiling.

"We love you too," said Sweeney, wrapping an arm around Lucy's waist.

Johanna smiled, a little sadly this time, and walked out with Anthony. She had finally forgiven her parents, and she was ready to move on from the past.

**A/N: And that's the end of this story. Thanks to all of the reviewers!**


End file.
